CB East, CR South & CR North were winners in Saturday’s district 1 4A quarterfinals. Check out Andrew Robinson’s Kwik Goal recaps. CR South/Souderton photos provided by John Gleeson. Check back for a gallery of photos.
No 1 Central Bucks East 5, No 9 Garnet Valley 0
Maybe it was the mask, after all it was Halloween, but Garnet Valley had no answer for Kiera Sleicher and her teammates on Saturday.
The senior midfielder, bound for JMU, has played the last two games in a protective facemask after an injury late in the regular season. She wasn’t just in costume as a great soccer player, she just is one and had two goals in the opening 17 minutes as the Patriots blew past a very strong Jaguars team.
A year after losing in the district quarterfinals, CB East left no doubt in qualifying for states for a sixth straight season.
The seniors again had a significant role in making that happen. Aside from Sleicher’s brace, seniors Mattie Williams and Taylor Roumy each tallied a pair of assists, senior Mia Forney scored and senior Addie Langlois converted from the spot for a second straight game with senior Ava Mignon capping it off after halftime. Not to forget the seniors on the defensive unit who kept the Jaguars off the board all afternoon.
CB East will host No. 4 Council Rock South in an all-SOL semifinal on Tuesday at 6 p.m.
Scoring Summary
1st Half
CBE – Kiera Sleicher (Mattie Williams) 7th
CBE – Kiera Sleicher (Taylor Roumy) 17th
CBE – Mia Forney (Mattie Williams) 35th
CBE – Addie Langlois (PK) 38th
Second Half
CBE – Ava Mignon (Taylor Roumy) 57th
CB East coach Jake Nesteruk: “Incredibly proud of our kids for earning our sixth consecutive qualification for states. It’s become the standard for us, but under the hood it requires these kids to see through the hard parts of the season, to continue to play with a rhythm no matter the opponent, and to embrace the target on their backs and the expectations from CBEGS teams behind them. We are looking forward to Tuesday.”
Senior midfielder Mattie Williams: “I thought we played really well together as a team. We did a good job combining with each other, creating movement off the ball, and staying connected defensively. I also thought we did a good job taking advantage of our opportunities in the final third and finishing our chances. I think the key moving forward is to continue building on that, using our speed up top, making runs into dangerous spaces, and getting on the end of crosses. We need to stay consistent with our attacking movement and finishing because those are things that can continue to create success for us.”
Senior forward Taylor Roumy: “I think we played really well overall. In the first half, it took us a little while to adjust and find our flow but once we did, we started playing really well and finishing our chances. In the second half, I think we really took control of the game and played our game. We moved the ball really well, communicated, and played as a team. Nobody was selfish with the ball or just trying to do things individually. I think that’s one of the biggest strengths of our team. We always play for each other, work together, and put the team first. It was a complete team effort, and I think that really showed throughout the game.”
Senior forward Mia Forney: “I think we showed up and did what we knew we needed to do. We knew this game would get us to states where we’ve been five times in a row before this, so it was an expectation. I think the team worked really well together and connected a lot, as well as being able to stay calm and finish chances. We had pretty much a shutdown defense against a fair offense which is always nice. I don’t think it was anything special, just our normal dominant mentality that led us to win.”
Senior midfielder Kiera Sleicher: “We went into this game knowing that a win would send us to states, and after going through playbacks last year, we wanted to get the job done today. Everyone wanted it, and I think that really showed in how we played as a team. It was a really strong team win. Beyond the goals we scored, we created a ton of great scoring opportunities. We had a lot of good combination plays from our back line all the way up to our forwards, and I thought we connected really well in the final third. Overall, I think we played really well together and everyone contributed to the win.”
Senior midfielder Ava Mignon: “I thought that it looked good against a good opponent. I think we created a lot of really good chances in the game and moved the ball well in the final third. Overall, I think a good game from everyone and a very good team effort to get the win.”
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 4 1 – 5
GARNET VALLEY 0 0 – 0
No 4 Council Rock South 2, No 12 Souderton 1
Every year, there seems to be one or two teams in the district bracket that are under-seeded.
The Council Rock South coaches adamantly thought that applied to Souderton, so there was little shock when the Indians took down No. 5 Spring-Ford on Thursday to set up an all-SOL quarterfinal with a state playoff bid on the line. Equally worrisome was Souderton’s propensity for comebacks, so the Golden Hawks knew they’d be in for an 80-minute grind.
After having an early goal called back, Brooke Pavlow seemed only more motivated to score, staking CR South to a halftime lead before Anna Horn netted an important second goal to make it 2-0 before Souderton sliced the lead in half in the final minutes.
Souderton’s season is not over, the Indians will travel to No. 9 Garnet Valley for the first playback round and need two wins to qualify for states.
The win sends CR South to states for the first time since 2023, the Hawks will travel to top seed CB East for Tuesday’s semifinal round at 6 p.m.
Scoring Summary
1st half
CRS – Brooke Pavlow
2nd half
CRS- Anna Horn
S
CR South coach Nick Heim: “A bid to states was on the line at home today against a really solid Souderton team. When the draw came out, our staff had a feeling we would eventually see them. They’re a much better side than what their seed was; they are big, physical, have some really technical players, and some outright threats that need to be accounted for. They’re the most dangerous team on set pieces we have seen all year. We knew it would be one we would have to grind out.”
Pavlow powers on: “We had a good game plan coming in and felt like we got on the board early when Brooke Pavlow got on the end of a set piece, but it was called back. I thought that may deflate our sails a bit, but to the girls credit, it didn’t phase them. Halfway through the first half, Pavlow took a corner that got knocked down and it got recycled back out to her at the corner of the box. Brooke picked her head up and put one into the far upper 90 to give us a 1-0 lead that held till half.”
Countering Souderton: “We had seen some changes they made on film in their previous playoff games and prepared our group for it in the second half. We were able to extend the lead when Anna Horn got on the end of a corner kick. Souderton kept generating set pieces and eventually scored on a corner of their own with just under two to play. We were able to see out the last bit of the game to advance.”
Plenty of props: “I thought it was a total team effort today. Our backs: Krissy Philip, Kait Hickey, Maddie Mohr, and Lianna Shikhvarger were terrific on some really talented forwards. At times it was Lily Heron or Julia Purvy that we trusted our girls in one-on-one matchups with. Pavlow and Horn got on the scoresheet, but I felt Ruby Bross was again incredible for us; some really tough matchups we slid her around on and she is always up to the challenge. Maddie Hyams made an incredible save on a rocket of a header in the first half, not just getting down to stop it but holding onto it to prevent any rebounds. Our forward rotation- Lylah Day, G Conetta, Riley O’Halloran, Claire Vizza, and Lorelei Hanratty were great tracking runners and being dangerous against a back line that has some future college players in it.”
Back to states: “I think we still have some things to adjust and work on, but really happy for this group to punch their ticket to states. These seniors were freshmen the last time we advanced to the state tournament, so a nice full circle moment for them today. We head to a very, very talented East team on Tuesday night.”
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 1 1 – 2
SOUDERTON 0 1 – 1
No 14 Council Rock North 3, No 11 WC Henderson 1
The bus miles are starting to pile up for Council Rock North, but at this time of year, that’s a good thing.
Dating back to their win over Garnet Valley – a road game late in the regular season, the Indians have made three longer trips and come away with a big victory each time. Thursday, their win at Pennridge got them to the quarterfinals for the first time since 2015 with Saturday’s trip to West Chester holding the potential of breaking a state playoff drought just as long.
The senior class led the way again. Co-captain Keagan Terry was outstanding in the attack, assisting the first goal to senior Sarina Igval then netting a brace to round out the scoring.
Cierra Frank, the only non-senior starter on the back line, led another robust defensive effort, and the junior even chipped in an assist for good measure in a strong all-around team performance.
CR North will travel to No. 2 Downingtown West for a 6 p.m. start in the semifinals on Tuesday night.
Scoring Summary
1st half
CRN – Sarina Igval (Keagan Terry) 26:00
CRN – Keagan Terry (Cierra Frank) 3:32
2nd half
WCH – 24:07
CRN – Keagan Terry 20:32
CR North coach Gavin Flannigan: A really good performance today at WC Henderson. I thought we matched their intensity well and did a good job of stopping them playing how they wanted t0, while also establishing how we wanted to play. We were a little slow to start but once we settled down I felt like we had a lot of the territory but maybe not a huge possession advantage.
Frank & Terry lead attack: “Our first goal came when Cierra Frank stepped out of the backline with the ball, found Keagan, who played a great through ball to Sarina. She was able to beat her defender, but inside and hit a great shot into the far top corner. We continued to dominate the possession, Henderson was able to generate a couple of shots on goal and then before half time, Cierra hit a great free kick and Keagan was able to bring it down and slot it home.”
Securing states: “In the second half Henderson scored first but we were able to respond quickly through Keagan again. After that I thought we managed the game well and survived the last 10 mins. Really impressed with everyone again today. We feel like we have a good understanding of the team we are and that gives us confidence as we move on.”
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 2 1 – 3
WC HENDERSON 0 1 – 1
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